Marlon Brando Oscar Refusal: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Sunday night that Sacheen Littlefeather has died. She was a Native American actress and activist who turned down Marlon Brando’s best actor Oscar in 1973. She turned 75. The academy wrote on its Twitter account that Littlefeather had died.
There was no immediate word on why Littlefeather died, but multiple news sources said she had been sick with breast cancer. Marie Louise Cruz was born in Salinas, California, on November 14, 1946. In her 20s, she changed her name to Littlefeather as she learned more about her Native American roots and became an activist. On March 27, 1973, she gave the Oscars one of its most exciting moments.
As Brando was called the best actor in The Godfather, Littlefeather took the stage in moccasins and a buckskin dress to say that Brando was sorry he had to turn down the award because of how Hollywood treated and portrayed Native Americans.
People booed and cheered when she gave her speech to turn down Brando’s Oscar. The Los Angeles Times said she saw John Wayne being stopped from rushing the stage while she was on.
Mandalit Del Barco of NPR reported in August on an interview Littlefeather gave to KQED in 2020 about the speech and what happened afterward. “People were making money off of the Hollywood Indian’s racist image. They will, of course, boo. They don’t want to be bothered in the evening.”
Littlefeather said a team of security guards helped her get off the stage at the Oscars. She told Hollywood had not hired her for years because she was “red-listed.” This year, almost 50 years after Littlefeather’s Oscars appearance, the academy officially apologized to her for the abuse she had to deal with it. In a letter from June, former Academy President David Rubin wrote about the “unjustified and unwarranted” abuse she had to deal with.
The Los Angeles Times says Brando later said he felt terrible about putting Littlefeather in that situation. “I was upset that people had booed, whistled, and stomped, even if it was meant for me,” he told the talk show host at the time, Dick Cavett. “At least they should have been polite enough to listen to her.” If you think this is interesting, please share it with your friends. For more updates and the latest news regarding celebrities, Visit Newswatchlist.com.